Anarchist. "Good government"
is a lot like "western civilization." A nice idea
in theory, but a utopian one in practice. Kill the state,
free the man.

With no state to favor them, we shall see if the
capitalist class is truly a 'natural' consequence
of human interaction, rather than a parasitic organism,
sustained only through massive state intervention.

My Intellectual Interests

History: The present may be our
problem, but it is a product of the past. Disregarding or
misrepesenting that past has consequences. Just ask our
neo-conservative overlords who seem to be unconsciously
mimicking, word for word, their British antecedents.
History is not just about what happened, it's about
what is still happening.

My Choice Topics

The Middle East. Next to Congress, one
of the world's most fractious and unstable regions. An
astonishing intersection of local and global politics. You
can't escape it. That's why it's my region of
study. A more-than-Shakespearean drama.

See also: Computers, American Politics,
and Revolutions.

My Favorite Books

The Monkeywrench Gang (Edward Abbey):
Sabotaging progress is a tough job, but somebody's go
to do it. Sticking it to civilization.

See also: Black Flag, Dropkick
Murphys, They Might be Giants. In
terms of classical music, works by Sergei
Prokofiev, Georg Telemann and
Ludwig van Beethoven. Tom
Lehrer brings good cheer to all too.

My Favorite Movies

The Matrix: dystopia on the big screen.
The individual against the machine. Literally.

See also: Monty Python's ridiculous Life of
Bryan, the Marx Brothers' no less ridiculous
Duck Soup, North by
Northwest, and of a less ancient vintage (not to
mention considerable contemporary applicability) V
for Vendetta.

My Favorite Places

The Pyrenees: southern France and
northern Spain host Europe's second highest mountain
range. Good food, great trails, and the sort of wildness
not really present in the Alps.

See also: California's Lassen and
Sequoia national parks, as well as its
central coast and the city of San
Francisco. In Switzerland, the cantons of
Graudbunden and Ticino
and the city of Lausanne.

Footsteps to Follow

The desert anarchist casts a long shadow. A man who
lived his life as he pleased. A man with a cause. A man of
contradictions. A man of considerable wit. A man whose
contributions (literary and otherwise) have outlived
him.

"There never was a good war or a bad
revolution."

Amen to that.

Send comments or questions to zdjahromi@zgmail.com (remove the letter 'z' from the address before sending).